Artist: Yo-Yo Ma

Birth Name: Yo-yo MaDate of Birth: Oct. 07, 1955Discipline/Occupation(s): CellistNationality: 🇫🇷 French-born 🇺🇸 AmericanContribution(s): Ma was born in Paris and spent his schooling years in New York City and was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from the Juilliard School and Harvard University and has enjoyed a prolific career as both a soloist performing with orchestras around the world and a recording artist. He has recorded more than 90 albums and received 18 Grammy Awards.

In addition to recordings of the standard classical repertoire, he has recorded a wide variety of folk music such as American bluegrass music, traditional Chinese melodies, the tangos of Argentinian composer Ástor Piazzolla, and Brazilian music. He has also collaborated with Grammy Award-winning jazz singer Bobby McFerrin, as well as five-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and guitarist James Taylor. Ma’s primary performance instrument is a Montagnana cello crafted in 1733 and valued at US$2.5 million.

He has been a United Nations Messenger of Peace since 2006.

He was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2001, Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, and Polar Music Prize in 2012.